Conversion Therapy, NPR and Tight Shirts

I'm thinking I should change the name of this blog to the Michele "Crazy Eyes" Bachmann Report since I write about her so much; but I don't have a photo of her six pack (which is mandatory avatar action). On NPR Morning Edition this morning the very controversial Conversion Therapy was a topic. It has been in the news a lot lately because Bachmann's husband (I'm not going to give him his own identity) has a clinic where, yes you guessed it, they claim to be able to pray away the gay.

The NPR report interviews two peeps, one that was cured of his gayness (he no longer listens to techno music) and one that, correctly, says that the techniques are harmful. Me I'm-a-gonna take the side of the American Psychological Ass. that states in their official report...

"The longstanding consensus of the behavioral and social sciences and the health and mental health professions is that homosexuality per se is a normal and positive variation of human sexual orientation (Bell, Weinberg & Hammersmith, 1981; Bullough, 1976; Ford & Beach 1951 ; Kinsey, Pomeroy, & Martin, 1948; Kinsey, Pomeroy, Martin, & Gebhard, 1953 ). Homosexuality per se is not a mental disorder (APA, 1975). Since 1974, the American Psychological Association (APA) has opposed stigma, prejudice, discrimination, and violence on the basis of sexual orientation and has taken a leadership role in supporting the equal rights of lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals (APA, 2005)."

You see, I'm not a conservative Christian evangelical right winger. When credible science comes out I accept it. After all just look at how the right are still debating the scopes monkey trial and Roe v. Wade and stem cell research. Pray away the gay, please. Concerning the gentleman that claims that reparative therapy cured him of his gayness, well, obviously, he was never gay...just curious. To say that homosexuality is a choice is saying that people are choosing to be a persecuted minority where mainstream society, wrongly, is abusive to them. It's genetics, homies.

All things being equal, if you can really pray away the gay, then theoretically you can also pray away the hetero. Imagine that peeps. If we prayed aways the hetero there would be world peace, no sexism and the sale of tight shirts (for our muscular, hairless bodies) would go thru the roof. As it is, you cannot pray away the gay, but you can be accepting of someone because...because we are all human and we are all in this together.

* APA official paper

* The mighty and funded for now, NPR

* Wiki.